Composting accelerators for organic waste or livestock bedding

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a sterilization agent for livestock bedding or a composting accelerator for organic waste or livestock bedding, comprising at least one  Bacillus coagulans  thermophilic bacterium or a combination of the at least one  Bacillus coagulans  thermophilic bacterium and at least one  Bacillus subtilis  mesophilic bacterium, as an active ingredient, wherein the  Bacillus coagulans  thermophilic bacterium as a preferable bacterium is viable at a temperature of 40 to 60° C. and the  Bacillus subtilis  mesophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of 30 to 50° C., and the mesophilic bacterium also has a sterilizing effect on harmful bacteria in bedding; and to a method for sterilizing livestock bedding or a method for accelerating composting of organic waste or livestock bedding by using these agents each as an active ingredient.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Divisional of U.S. application Ser. No.14/486,318, filed Sep. 15, 2014, which claims priority from U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/878,499, filed Sep. 16, 2013.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method for sterilizing livestockbedding by using a predetermined Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium or a combination of the Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium and a Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium. The sterilizedbedding can be recycled as livestock bedding.

The present invention also relates to a method for acceleratingcomposting of organic waste or bedding by using a predetermined Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium or a combination of the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium and a Bacillus subtilis mesophilicbacterium.

BACKGROUND ART

It is known that Bacillus bacteria can be used for a treatment such as atreatment for composting organic waste.

For example, Patent Document 1 (JP Patent Publication (Kokai) No.2013-060378A) describes an efficient method for sterilizing harmfulbacteria, particularly odor-generating bacteria and pathogenic bacteria,in composting organic waste such as garbage or bedding or recyclingbedding. This method employs at least one microorganism selected fromthe group consisting of Bacillus, Geobacillus and Aeribacillus.

Patent Document 2 (JP Patent No. 4503530) describes a method fortreating organic waste, comprising allowing a mesophilic bacteriumhaving activity at 15 to 50° C. and a thermophilic bacterium havingactivity at 50 to 70° C. to be present in organic waste. The mesophilicbacterium is Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (FERM BP-1096) and thethermophilic bacterium is Bacillus pallidus TK6004 strain (FERMBP-08597).

Patent Document 3 (JP Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2006-238820A)discloses livestock bedding produced from livestock manure as a main rawmaterial, by heating and sterilizing the raw material at hightemperature while stirring, and then adding bacteria capable ofdecomposing and fermenting organic substances and useful bacteriacapable of inhibiting pathogenic bacteria to the livestock, decomposingand fermenting organic components of livestock manure while stirring,simultaneously with amplifying useful bacteria inhibiting pathogenicbacteria to the livestock, and drying the livestock manure into grains.The publication also describes that sterilization is made by e.g., aburner at 90 to 110° C. for one to two or more hours.

PRIOR ART DOCUMENT Patent Document

Patent Document 1: JP Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2013-060378A

Patent Document 2: JP Patent No. 4503530

Patent Document 3: JP Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2006-238820A

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Problem to be Solved By the Invention

Livestock bedding once used is contaminated with livestock excrement(usually, excreta). In order to reuse the livestock bedding, it isnecessary to kill harmful bacteria (contaminant), remove water to drythe bedding, and reduce level of ammonia. These treatments must beperformed efficiently in a short period. A predetermined aerobicBacillus bacterium developed by the present inventors is expected to beused for sterilization and composting of bedding. In a method using sucha bacterium, fermentation heat is used to kill harmful bacteria andvaporize water. This method includes repeating an operation such asstacking formation of bedding, turning upside down (for oxygen supply)and spreading.

Sterilization using a microorganism is favorable in cost, since no heatsource is required and has an advantage in that a large amount ofbedding can be treated at a time. The key point of this approach isusing a microorganism capable of killing harmful bacteria to a levelwhere the harmful bacteria produce substantially no adverse effect.Whether the number of cells of a target harmful bacterium can be reducedto 1/100,000 or less by fermentation heat is considered as a roughstandard for such a microorganism. If such a useful microorganism can befound, bedding can be further effectively sterilized. However, sincemost of beddings used are persistent (hard-to-decompose) plant-derivedbeddings and wood-based beddings, growth of bacteria is more difficultthan we thought and thus effective sterilization treatment cannot beachieved.

Means for Solving the Problem

The present inventors have now found that Bacillus bacteria or acombination of these bacteria capable of effectively sterilizinglivestock bedding. Based on the finding, the present invention wasaccomplished herein.

The present invention includes the following features.

(1) A method for sterilizing livestock bedding, comprising a step offermenting the bedding by adding at least one Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium, or a combination of the at least one Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium and at least one Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium, to the livestock bedding.

(2) A method for accelerating composting of organic waste or livestockbedding, comprising a step of fermenting the organic waste or bedding byadding at least one Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium, or acombination of the at least one Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium and at least one Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium,thereof to organic waste or livestock bedding.

(3) The method according to (1) or (2), in which the Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 40 to 60°C.

(4) The method according to (1) or (2), in which the Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 30 to 50° C.

(5) The method according to any of (1) to (4), using only fermentationheat of a microorganism.

(6) The method according to any of (1) to (3) and (5), in which theBacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium is selected from the groupconsisting of Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain(International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693), and variantsthereof.

(7) The method according to any of (1), (2), (4) and (5), in which theBacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium is Bacillus subtilis C-3102strain (International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096) or avariant thereof.

(8) The method according to any of (1) to (7), in which the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium is Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain(International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693) or a variantthereof, and the Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium is Bacillussubtilis C-3102 strain (International Deposition Accession No. FERMBP-1096) or a variant thereof.

(9) Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (International Deposition AccessionNo. NITE BP-01692) or a variant thereof.

(10) Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01693) or a variant thereof.

(11) A sterilization agent for livestock bedding, comprising at leastone Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium or a combination of the atleast one Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium and at least oneBacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium, as an active ingredient.

(12) The sterilization agent according to (11), in which the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least40 to 60° C.

(13) The sterilization agent according to (11), in which the Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 30to 50° C.

(14) The sterilization agent according to (11) or (12), in which theBacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium is selected from the groupconsisting of Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain(International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693) and variantsthereof.

(15) The sterilization agent according to (11) or (13), in which theBacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium is Bacillus subtilis C-3102strain (International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096) or avariant thereof.

(16) The sterilization agent according to any of (11) to (15), in whichthe Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium is Bacillus coagulansCP3425 strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693) ora variant thereof, and the Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium isBacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (International Deposition Accession No.FERM BP-1096) or a variant thereof.

(17) A composting accelerator for organic waste or livestock bedding,comprising at least one Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium, or acombination of the at least one Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium and at least one Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium, as anactive ingredient.

(18) The composting accelerator for organic waste or livestock beddingaccording to (17), in which the Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 40 to 60° C.

(19) The composting accelerator for organic waste or livestock beddingaccording to (17), in which the Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacteriumis viable at a temperature of at least 30 to 50° C.

(20) The composting accelerator according to (17) or (18), in which theBacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium is selected from the groupconsisting of Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain(International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693), and variantsthereof.

(21) The composting accelerator according to (17) or (19), in which theBacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium is Bacillus subtilis C-3102strain (International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096) or avariant thereof.

(22) The composting accelerator according to any of (17) to (21), inwhich the Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium is Bacilluscoagulans CP3425 strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITEBP-01693) or a variant thereof, and the Bacillus subtilis mesophilicbacterium is Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (International DepositionAccession No. FERM BP-1096) or a variant thereof.

(23) A composition for accelerating sterilization or composting ofbedding, containing a Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium and aBacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium.

According to the present invention, the invention has an advantage inthat livestock bedding can be effectively sterilized by use of acombination of predetermined Bacillus bacteria.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a stack of bedding.

FIG. 2 shows a cross section of the stack of bedding, in whichtemperature measuring sites are shown. The sites measured are indicatedas “Up” representing a site at a distance of 20 cm downward from theceiling surface of the stack; “Down” representing a site at a distanceof 10 cm upward from the bottom surface of the stack; and “Lateral”representing a site at a distance of 11.5 cm inward from the sidesurface.

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show just embodiments and the size of a stack isadjustable depending upon the individual cases.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The present invention will be more specifically described.

1. Agent and Method for Sterilizing Livestock Bedding

The present invention provides a method for sterilizing livestockbedding, comprising a step of fermenting the bedding by adding at leastone Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium, or a combination of theat least one Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium and at least oneBacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium, to the livestock bedding.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least40 to 60° C. and has a sterilizing effect on harmful bacteria since thebacterium produces fermentation heat as the bacterium cells grow in thebedding.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 30to 50° C. and has a sterilizing effect on harmful bacteria since thebacterium produces fermentation heat as the bacterium cells grow in thebedding.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the abovestep, only fermentation heat of the microorganisms is characteristicallyused.

In this method, harmful bacteria to livestock, such as Escherichia coli,Salmonella bacteria and Campylobacter bacteria, which are contaminantsin bedding, can be killed. According to experiments carried out by thepresent inventors, a temperature of 54° C. or more is required toeffectively reduce or kill harmful bacteria in bedding, and thetemperature is preferably maintained at 60° C. or more to obtainsterilization effect.

A Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium has a nature of being viableat a temperature of 40 to 60° C. Other than this nature, the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium has an ability of increasing thetemperature of bedding containing livestock excrement (usually, excreta)to 54° C. or more due to fermentation heat. Because of this, harmfulbacteria in bedding can be effectively killed. The Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium and/or Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium canbe screened, for example, by a livestock ammonia tolerance test followedby a fermentation test of bedding.

Specific examples of the Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacteriuminclude Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain(International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693), and variantsthereof.

Specific examples of the Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium includeBacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (International Deposition Accession No.FERM BP-1096) or a variant thereof.

A combination of preferable bacterial strains includes a combination ofBacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International Deposition Accession No.NITE BP-01693) or a variant thereof as the Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium and Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain(International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096) or a variantthereof as the Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium.

Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (International Deposition Accession No.NITE BP-01692) and Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (InternationalDeposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693) were deposited at the NITEPatent Microorganisms Depositary, National Institute of Technology andEvaluation (#122, 2-5-8 Kazusakamatari, Kisarazu-shi, Chiba 292-0818,Japan), which is an international authority depository, on Aug. 13,2013, and the above international deposition accession numbers wereassigned. These bacterial strains were identified to belong to Bacilluscoagulans by comparing their 16S rDNA sequences to that of bacterialspecies known in the art.

According to the present invention, bedding can be sterilized by eitherone or both of these Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacteria or by acombination of at least one of these Bacillus coagulans bacterialstrains and a Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium.

The Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium is a bacterium capable ofincreasing the temperature of bedding to 40° C. or more due tofermentation heat when it is added to the bedding. Examples of apreferable mesophilic bacterium include Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain(International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096) or a variantthereof having substantially the same sterilizing effect as the C-3102strain. The C-3102 strain was originally deposited on Dec. 25, 1985, atthe International Patent Organisms Depositary of the National Instituteof Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (at the time ofdeposition; the Fermentation Research Institute, Agency of IndustrialScience and Technology of the Ministry of International Trade andIndustry) located at 1-1-1 Higashi, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan (at the timeof deposition; 1-1-3, Higashi, Yatabe-cho, Tsukuba-gun, Ibaraki, Japan)under deposition No. FERM 8584; and transferred by the same institutionto international deposition on Jun. 28, 1986 under deposition No. FERMBP-1096 (at the time of transfer; FERM 1096). The bacterial straindeposited is at present stored and controlled in the NITE PatentMicroorganisms Depositary, National Institute of Technology andEvaluation (2-5-8 Kazusakamatari, Kisarazu-shi, Chiba, Japan, 292-0818).Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain has been also deposited at a foundationof Taiwan, the Food Industry Research and Development Institute, Depositof Biological Material for Patent Application, on November 14, 101 underthe name of Bacillus subtilis C3102 (under deposition No. BCRC910568).The bacterial strain is described also in e.g., JP Patent Publications(Kokai) Nos. 63-209580A (1988) and 62-232343A(1987).

In the present invention, variants of the above three bacterial strainsdeposited may be used as long as they have the same sterilizing effectsas those of respective parent strains. A variant can be obtained, forexample, by culturing a parent strain in the presence of a chemicalmutagen such as nitrosoguanidine, nitrosourea, methyl ethanesulfonateand derivatives thereof or by irradiating a parent strain with highenergy beams such as UV ray, a gamma ray or X-ray.

The above three types of bacterial strains deposited or variants thereofto be used in the present invention may be added in the form of spores.The spore is a structure for protecting a bacterium itself, formed in aninhospitable environment, and can be germinated into a trophozoite whenthe conditions become favorable.

If the above bacterial strains, more specifically, a combination ofCP3424 strain+C-3102 strain or a combination of CP3425 strain+C-3102strain, is added to bedding, a higher sterilization effect is exertedthan that of the addition of C-3102 strain alone (see Examples describedlater).

As described above, according to the present invention, sterilization ofbedding can be effectively performed by combining a Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium with at least one Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium selected from the group consisting of Bacillus coagulansCP3424 strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01692),Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International Deposition Accession No.NITE BP-01693), and variants thereof.

When the Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium or a combination of aBacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium and a Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium is added to livestock bedding, each bacterium canbe added, for example, in an appropriate amount to bedding; however, theamount of bacterium is not limited within such an appropriate range aslong as the bacterium can grow in bedding and produce fermentation heatrequired for sterilization, in bedding.

Each of the bacterial strains can be aerobically cultured and amplifiedunder culture conditions (culture medium, culture temperature andculture time) routinely used for culturing Bacillus coagulans orBacillus subtilis.

The medium is a liquid medium or solid medium containing e.g., a carbonsource, a nitrogen source and trace elements. More specifically, themedium may contain organic nitrogen sources such as peptone,polypeptone, meat extract, yeast extract, malt extract and corn steepliquor; inorganic nitrogen sources including ammonium salts such asammonium sulfate and ammonium chloride and nitrates such as sodiumnitrate; carbon sources such as glucose, sucrose, maltose, starch,sorbitol, maltooligosaccharide and dextrin; and inorganic salts such asphosphates, hydrochlorides, nitrates and sulfates of magnesium, calcium,sodium, potassium, iron, zinc and copper.

The culture temperature can be set within the range of 30 to 60° C. andthe pH of the medium can be set within the range of 6.0 to 8.5.

The culture time can be set within the range of 10 to 72 hours. Abacterial strain after culture may be stored as a concentrate obtainedby concentration by a separation method such as centrifugal separationor membrane separation, or as a dried product, which is obtained bydrying the cultured strain using a drying method such as lyophilization.

According to the method for sterilizing bedding, a bacterial strain asmentioned above is added to bedding and fermentation is initiated andthe resultant fermentation heat (fermentation temperature about 55 to80° C.) is used for sterilization of the bedding. The time forsterilization treatment is not particularly limited; however, the timeis usually 1 to 2 weeks.

Individual bacteria may be added simultaneously or separately. In thecase of separate addition, preferably, a Bacillus subtilis mesophilicbacterium is added first. After temperature increase due to fermentationof bedding is confirmed, it is desirable to add a Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium to the bedding.

Addition manner of bacteria is not particularly limited as long as theycan uniformly add to the bedding. For example, addition can be made insuch a manner that a bacterial suspension is prepared when used and issprayed over bedding, or that bacterial cell powder is sprayed overbedding.

The livestock bedding refers to bedding for livestock such as a cock, acow, a pig, a goat, a turkey and a quail. The “bedding” as used hereinrefers to litter tray or bedding for livestock, and generally formed ofstraw, chaff, grass or woody pieces (sawdust, etc.). As used herein,unless otherwise specified, the term “bedding” refers to a used onecontaining excrement (usually, excreta) of livestock and harmfulbacteria. Examples of the harmful bacteria include Escherichia coli,Salmonella bacteria and Campylobacter bacteria, as mentioned above. Suchharmful bacteria are killed and bedding can be recycled by the method ofthe present invention. Preferable bedding is poultry manure bedding orcow manure bedding.

The present invention further provides Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain(International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01692) or a variantthereof, and Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01693) or a variant thereof.

These bacterial strains or variants are as explained in the above. Thevariants have substantially the same sterilizing effect on harmfulbacteria in bedding as those of respective parent strains. As usedherein, the term “substantially the same” means that the levels ofsterilization effect and/or the types of harmful bacteria may not becompletely the same but virtually the same.

The present invention further provides a sterilization agent, forlivestock bedding that can be used in the above sterilization method,containing at least one Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium or acombination of the at least one Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium and at least one Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium, as anactive ingredient.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least40 to 60° C. and has a sterilizing effect on harmful bacteria due tofermentation heat produced as the bacterium cells grow in bedding.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 30to 50° C. and has a sterilizing effect on harmful bacteria due tofermentation heat produced as the bacterium cells grow in bedding.

A Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium and Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium can be screened from livestock bedding inaccordance with the above screening procedure.

A specific example of the sterilization agent of the present inventionis a sterilization agent containing the Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium, which is selected from the group consisting of Bacilluscoagulans CP3424 strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITEBP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01693), and variants thereof.

Another example of the sterilization agent of the present invention is asterilization agent containing at least one Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium, which is a bacterial strain selected from thegroup consisting of Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (InternationalDeposition Accession No. NITE BP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693) andvariants thereof and a Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium, which isBacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (International Deposition Accession No.FERM BP-1096) or a variant thereof, as an active ingredient.

Preferable examples of the sterilization agent include a sterilizationagent containing a Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium, which isBacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International Deposition Accession No.NITE BP-01693) or a variant thereof; and a Bacillus subtilis mesophilicbacterium, which is Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (InternationalDeposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096) or a variant thereof, as anactive ingredient.

The sterilization agent of the present invention may be provided in theform of a mixture of the above bacterial strains or in the form of aso-called kit in which individual bacterial strains are separatelypackaged. Bacterial strains may take any form such as powder, granules,suspension, concentrate, or carrier-immobilized product, and may bepresent in any state such as solid, liquid, semisolid or gel, as long asthey can be amplified when used.

The sterilization agent of the present invention may be in the form of acomposition, more specifically, a composition for sterilizing beddingcomprising a Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium as defined aboveand a Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium as defined above.

2. A Composting Accelerator and Composting Acceleration Method forOrganic Waste or Livestock Bedding

The present invention further provides a method for acceleratingcomposting of organic waste or bedding, comprising a step of fermentingorganic waste or the bedding by adding at least one Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium, or a combination of the at least one Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium and at least one Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium, to the organic waste or the livestock bedding.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least40 to 60° C. and has an acceleration effect of composting organic wasteor livestock bedding.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 30to 50° C. and has an acceleration effect of composting organic waste orlivestock bedding.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the abovestep, only fermentation heat of a microorganism as mentioned above ischaracteristically used.

The Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium and the Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium can be screened, for example, from livestockbedding in accordance with the above screening procedure.

A specific example of the Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium isselected from the group consisting of Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain(International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01692), Bacilluscoagulans CP3425 strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITEBP-01693), and variants thereof.

A specific example of the Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium isBacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (International Deposition Accession No.FERM BP-1096) or a variant thereof.

A preferable combination of bacteria is a combination of a Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium, which is Bacillus coagulans CP3425strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693) or avariant thereof, and a Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium, which isBacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (International Deposition Accession No.FERM BP-1096) or a variant thereof.

Individual bacterial strains, agents, bedding, etc. are as described inSection 1 above and should be referred to the description of Section 1in this Section.

The aforementioned method for sterilizing bedding can be further usedfor composting bedding no longer required or to be discarded and organicwaste such as garbage discarded from production sites, cooking sites andhousehold sites. More specifically, the bedding or organic waste isfermented by adding a combination of the above bacterial strains to thebedding or organic waste and the resultant fermentation heat is used toaccelerate composting the organic waste or bedding. Since thefermentation temperature reaches about 55 to 80° C., fermentation isaccelerated; at the same time, water is vaporized and harmful bacteriaare killed. At the time of composting, preferably, bedding and organicwaste are sometimes or always stirred or mixed to take air therein. Inthis manner, effective fermentation and composting can be made.

The amount of bacterial strain to be added by the method is determinedas the amount at which the bacterial strain is amplified and compostingis accelerated. The time required for composting treatment is notparticularly limited; however it is usually 2 to 3 months.

The composts obtained by the above method can be used in the field ofagriculture such as cultivation of plants.

The present invention further provides a composting accelerator fororganic waste or livestock bedding, which can be used in a method foraccelerating composting as mentioned above, containing at least oneBacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium or a combination of the atleast one Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium and at least oneBacillus subtilis mesophilic bacterium, as an active ingredient.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least40 to 60° C. and has an acceleration effect of composting organic wasteor livestock bedding.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 30to 50° C. and has an acceleration effect of composting organic waste orlivestock bedding.

The form of the agent is the same as described in the abovesterilization agent, and should be specifically referred to thedescription of Section 1 above.

The Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium and Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium can be screened from livestock bedding inaccordance with the above screening procedure.

A specific example of the composting accelerator of the presentinvention is a composting accelerator containing a Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium, which is a bacterial strain selected from thegroup consisting of Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (InternationalDeposition Accession No. NITE BP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693), andvariants thereof.

Another example of the composting accelerator of the present inventionis a composting accelerator containing at least one Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium selected from the group consisting of Bacilluscoagulans CP3424 strain (International Deposition Accession No. NITEBP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01693) and variants thereof, and a Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium, which is Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain(International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096) or a variantthereof, as an active ingredient.

A preferable example of the composting accelerator is a compostingaccelerator containing a Bacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium,which is Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International DepositionAccession No. NITE BP-01693) or a variant thereof, and a Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium, which is Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain(International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096) or a variantthereof, as an active ingredient.

The composting accelerator of the present invention may be in the formof a composition, more specifically, a composition for acceleratingcomposting of bedding composed of a Bacillus coagulans thermophilicbacterium defined above and a Bacillus subtilis mesophilic bacteriumdefined above.

EXAMPLES

The present invention will be more specifically described with referenceto the following Examples, which should not be construed as limiting thetechnical scope of the present invention.

Example 1

1. Separation and Identification of Microorganism

Beddings sampled in Japan were each suspended and diluted withsterilized water. The diluted solution was smeared onto a standard agarmedium or a CYC agar medium (ATCC medium 2591) and cultured at 50° C. or60° C. to form colonies. A colony was isolated, purified and identifiedbased on homology of the 16S rRNA gene sequence.

2. Screening Based on Ammonia Resistance

The bacterial strain cultured, separated and identified was suspendedand diluted with sterilized water, and added dropwise to TS mediumcontaining an ammonium salt and a high ammonium salt medium. Thebacterial microorganisms were cultured at 50° C. for about 12 hours.Microorganisms were selected based on the size of colony in the TSmedium containing an ammonium salt and the high ammonium salt medium. ABacillus licheniformis group and a Bacillus coagulans group wereselected by this method of selecting a microorganism having resistanceto ammonia.

3. Screening by Fermentation Temperature

To bedding (600 kg) used for raising chickens and containing Bacillussubtilis C-3102 strain (FERM BP-1096) in an amount of 1×10⁵ cfu/g, theBacillus licheniformis group and Bacillus coagulans group separated wereadded and mixed. After 4 to 5 days, bedding was turned upside down andfermented for further 4 days. Whether heat capacity during fermentationis improved or not by addition of the Bacillus licheniformis group orthe Bacillus coagulans group was checked. The heat capacity was obtainedby measuring temperature at three sites (FIG. 2) of a stack of bedding(FIG. 1) and making a calculation in accordance with Formula 1 (Table1).

$\begin{matrix}{{{Heat}\mspace{14mu}{capacity}} = {\int_{t\; 1}^{t\; 2}{10^{\frac{{T{(t)}} - {T{(r)}}}{z}}\ D\; t}}} & \left\lbrack {{Formula}\mspace{14mu} 1} \right\rbrack\end{matrix}$where z=5, T(r)=54, and T(t)=measured temperature.

TABLE 1-1 Heat capacity (relative value to C-3102 strain alone as 100)C-3102 strain + C-3102 strain B. licheniformis alone group Up 100 118Down 100 89 Lateral 100 74

TABLE 1-2 Heat capacity (relative value to C-3102 strain alone as 100)C-3102 strain + C-3102 strain B. coagulans alone group Up 100 115 Down100 145 Lateral 100 508

In the Tables, the upper site (Up), lower site (Down) and lateral site(Lateral) represent the corresponding positions shown in FIG. 2.

As a result, it was found that heat capacity improves in the case wherethe Bacillus coagulans group was added, compared to the case where theBacillus licheniformis group was added.

Next, whether each of bacterial strains constituting Bacillus coagulansgroup actually contributes to temperature increase of bedding wasinvestigated. To bedding (500 kg) used for raising chickens andcontaining Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (FERM BP-1096) in an amountof 1×10⁵ cfu/g, Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain and CP3425 strain,which are bacterial strains constituting the Bacillus coagulans group,were added and mixed. After 4 days, the bedding was turned upside downand fermented for further 4 days. Whether the heat capacity improves ornot was checked. The heat capacity was obtained by measuringtemperatures at three sites (FIG. 2) of a stack of bedding (FIG. 1) andmaking a calculation in accordance with Formula 1 (Table 2).

TABLE 2 Heat capacity (relative value to C-3102 strain alone as 100)C-3102 C-3102 strain + strain + C-3102 strain CP3424 CP3425 alone strainstrain Up 100 308 990 Down 100 90 313 Lateral 100 134 303

As a result, it was found that the heat capacity increases in the caseswhere Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain and Bacillus coagulans CP3425strain were added compared to the case containing only Bacillus subtilisC-3102 strain (FERM BP-1096). Particularly, the heat capacity ofBacillus coagulans CP3425 strain at the “Up” site was about 10 times aslarge as that of Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain. From these results, itcan be said that the temperature increase of bedding can be acceleratedby addition of Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain and CP3425 strain, andthat the bedding can be effectively sterilized by increasing heatcapacity in this way.

Example 2

1. Confirmation of Temperature of Fermentation Using Defatted Soybean

Sporulated Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (FERM BP-1096) and sporulatedBacillus coagulans CP3425 strain were separately suspended in water andmixed with defatted soybean (500 g). Each of the mixtures was filled ina foamed polystyrene container and cultured. The temperature change atthe center portion in the container was measured for 3 days. The heatcapacity was obtained by measuring a temperature at the center portionin the foamed polystyrene container and was calculated by Formula 1(Table 3).

TABLE 3 Heat capacity (relative value to C-3102 strain alone as 100)Relative heat capacity C-3102 strain 100 CP3425 strain 2585

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

As a result, the heat capacity of the case where Bacillus coagulansCP3425 strain was added was high compared to the case where Bacillussubtilis C-3102 strain (FERM BP-1096) was added.

The present invention made it possible to effectively sterilizelivestock bedding and reuse the bedding. This is useful for livestockindustry.

DEPOSIT

Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (International Deposition Accession No.NITE BP-01692).

Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (International Deposition Accession No.NITE BP-01693).

Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain (International Deposition Accession No.FERM BP-1096).

The invention claimed is:
 1. A composting accelerator for organic wasteor livestock bedding, comprising at least one Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium, or a combination of the at least one Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium and at least one Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium, as an active ingredient, wherein the Bacilluscoagulans thermophilic bacterium is selected from the group consistingof Bacillus coagulans CP3424 strain (International Deposition AccessionNo. NITE BP-01692), Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain (InternationalDeposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693).
 2. The composting acceleratorfor organic waste or livestock bedding according to claim 1, wherein theBacillus coagulans thermophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature ofat least 40 to 60° C.
 3. The composting accelerator for organic waste orlivestock bedding according to claim 1, wherein the Bacillus subtilismesophilic bacterium is viable at a temperature of at least 30 to 50° C.4. The composting accelerator according to claim 1, wherein the Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium is Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain(International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096).
 5. The compostingaccelerator according to claim 1, wherein the Bacillus coagulansthermophilic bacterium is Bacillus coagulans CP3425 strain(International Deposition Accession No. NITE BP-01693), and the Bacillussubtilis mesophilic bacterium is Bacillus subtilis C-3102 strain(International Deposition Accession No. FERM BP-1096).